Sticky element upon which insects adhere and materials and methods

ABSTRACT

A sticky element, comprising a sticky element having an insect-attracting color and an insect-attracting scent, the sticky element comprising sufficient sticky qualities to cause an insect to become permanently attached to the sticky element when any portion of the insect contacts with the sticky element, the sticky element adaptable to being disposed upon a surface. The surface may comprise a wrapping material, a flower pot cover, a flower pot, a floral arrangement, or other surface. When the sticky element is disposed on a wrapping material, the wrapping material is used to wrap a floral arrangement or decoratively cover a flower pot.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No 08,282,858, filedJul. 29, 1994, entitled STICKY ELEMENT UPON WHICH INSECTS ADHERE ANDMATERIALS AND METHODS, and now U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,802.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention sticky elements upon which insects adhere, andparticularly, surfaces and materials having a sticky element upon whichinsect adhere, and methods of using same.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the sheet of material of the presentinvention, showing the upper surface, the sticky element design beingdisposed thereon.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a plurality of sheets of materialconstructed in accordance with the present invention forming acontinuous roll of material.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a plurality of sheets of materialconstructed in accordance with the present invention forming acontinuous roll, showing one sheet of material partially detached.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a plurality of sheets of materialconstructed in accordance with the present invention forming acontinuous roll of material disposed in a dispenser, showing one sheetof material partially detached.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the sheet ofmaterial of the present invention, showing the upper surface, the stickyelement being disposed upon the upper surface.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the sheet ofmaterial of the present invention, showing the sticky element disposedon the upper surface of the sheet of material.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the sheet of material of the presentinvention, showing the method of disposing a flower pot on the sheet ofmaterial.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the sheet of material of the presentinvention, showing the method of wrapping the sheet of material about aflower pot.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the sheet of material of the presentinvention, showing a flower pot wrapped.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the flower pot utilized in the presentinvention, showing a sticky element disposed on the flower pot.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the sheet of material of the presentinvention, showing the sheet of material pre-formed into the shape of aflower pot cover, a sticky element disposed thereon.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the method of the present invention,showing a flower pot being disposed on a pre-formed flower pot covermolded from the sheet of material.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the method of the present invention,showing a flower pot covered by a pre-formed flower pot cover moldedfrom the sheet of material.

FIG. 14 is a side elevational view of another method of the sheet ofmaterial of the present invention, showing a floral arrangement beingdisposed above the sheet of material.

FIG. 15 is an elevated side view of another method of the presentinvention, showing a floral arrangement disposed on the sheet ofmaterial.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of another method of the presentinvention, showing a floral arrangement being wrapped.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of another method of the presentinvention, showing a floral arrangement wrapped.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a further method of the presentinvention, showing a sticky element being disposed on a surface.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of a further method of the presentinvention, showing a sticky element disposed on a surface.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

One drawback of sending fresh flowers, a floral arrangement (with orwithout a container), or a potted plant is the tendency for insects tobe present upon the fresh flowers, floral arrangement, or potted plant.Not infrequently after one of the foregoing items has been received,insects crawl from it across the decorative wrapping material wrappedabout the item, into the recipient's home, office, or hospital room.Obviously, this type of insect infestation is undesirable.

The present invention contemplates a sticky element, which is disposedupon a wrapping material for wrapping the above-defined items, includingpre-formed flower pot covers, the sticky element having sufficientsticky properties to cause insects which contacted the sticky element tobecome permanently attached thereto. Such a sticky element has aninsect-attracting color and an insect-attracting scent. The stickyelement may comprise an insecticide as well.

The wrapping material of the present invention has disposed upon atleast one surface of the wrapping material the sticky element describedherein. Therefore, when insects crawl from an item onto the wrappingmaterial of the claimed invention, the insects become attached to thesticky element on the wrapping material, and therefore cannot infest therecipient's home, office, or hospital room. The sticky element prevents,or greatly reduces, the previously described undesirable disadvantagesof receiving fresh flowers, floral arrangements, or potted plants.

THE EMBODIMENTS OF FIGS. 1-4

Referring to FIG. 1, designated generally by the reference numeral 10 isa wrapping material which is constructed in accordance with the presentinvention. The wrapping material 10 comprises at least one sheet ofmaterial 12. The sheet of material 12 has an upper surface 14, a lowersurface 16, and an outer periphery 18 (an edge of which is lifted forillustration purposes only). As shown in FIG. 1, the outer periphery 18of the sheet of material 12 comprises a first side 20, a second side 22,a third side 24, and fourth side 26. A sticky element 28 is disposed onat least one surface of the sheet of material 12, as will be describedin further detail below.

The sheet of material 12 is utilized to wrap a flower pot 30. The term"flower pot" refers to any type of container used for holding a floralarrangement 36 or a potted plant. The flower pot comprises an outersurface 32 and an inner surface 34.

The sheet of material 12 is also used to wrap about a floral arrangement36. "Floral arrangement" as used herein means cut fresh flowers,artificial flowers, other fresh and/or artificial plants or other floralmaterials and may include other secondary plants and/or ornamentationwhich add to the aesthetics of the overall floral arrangement 36. Thefloral arrangement 36 comprises a bloom or foliage portion 38 and a stemportion 40. However, it will be appreciated that the floral arrangement36 may consist of only a single bloom 38 or only foliage 38 (not shown).In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the sheet of material 12 is square. It willbe appreciated, however, that any shape or size of sheet 12 may be usedto wrap a flower pot 30 or a floral arrangement 36 as long as it issufficiently sized and shaped to wrap and encompass the flower pot 30 orfloral arrangement 36. For example, the sheet 12 may also comprise othershapes, i.e., rectangular, round, oval, octagonal, asymmetrical, or thelike. And multiple sheets of material 12 may be used. Moreover, whenmultiple sheets of material 12 are used in combination, the sheets ofmaterial 12 need not be uniform in size or shape. Finally, it will beappreciated that the sheet of material 12 shown in all embodimentsherein is substantially flat.

The sheet of material 12 may be constructed of a single sheet ofmaterial or a plurality of sheets. Any thickness of the sheet ofmaterial 12 may be utilized in accordance with the present invention aslong as the sheet of material 12 may be wrapped about at least a portionof a flower pot 30 or a floral arrangement 36, as described herein. Thesheet of material 12 has a thickness of less than about 1 mil to about30 mils. Typically, the sheet of material 12 has a thickness in a rangeof less than about 0.2 mils to about 30 mils. In a preferred embodiment,the sheet of material 12 is constructed from one sheet of man-madeorganic polymer film having a thickness in a range of from less thanabout 0.5 mils to about 2.5 mils.

The sheet of material 12 is constructed from any suitable material thatis capable of being wrapped about a flower pot 30 or floral arrangement36. Preferably, the wrapping material 10 comprises paper (untreated ortreated in any manner), cellophane, foil, man-made organic polymer film,fabric (woven or nonwoven or synthetic or natural), burlap, orcombinations thereof.

The term "man-made organic polymer film" means a man-made resin such asa polypropylene as opposed to naturally occurring resins such ascellophane. A man-made organic polymer film is relatively strong and notas subject to tearing (substantially non-tearable), as might be the casewith paper or foil. The man-made organic polymer film is a substantiallylinearly linked processed organic polymer film and is a synthetic linearchain organic polymer where the carbon atoms are substantially linearlylinked. Such films are synthetic polymers formed or synthesized frommonomers. Further, a relatively substantially linearly linked processedorganic polymer film is virtually waterproof which may be desirable inmany applications such as wrapping a floral arrangement.

Additionally, a relatively thin film of substantially linearly linkedprocessed organic polymer does not substantially deteriorate insunlight. Processed organic polymer films having carbon atoms bothlinearly linked and cross linked, and some cross linked polymer films,also may be suitable for use in the present invention provided suchfilms are substantially flexible and can be made in a sheet-like formatfor wrapping purposes consistent with the present invention. Forexample, one such man-made organic polymer film is a polypropylene film.

The sheet of material 12 may vary in color. Further, the sheet ofmaterial 12 may consist of designs which are printed, etched, and/orembossed thereon; in addition, the sheet of material 12 may have variouscolorings, coatings, flocking and/or metallic finishes, or becharacterized totally or partially by pearlescent, translucent,transparent, iridescent or the like, qualities. Each of the above-namedcharacteristics may occur alone or in combination. Moreover, eachsurface of the sheet of material 12 may vary in the combination of suchcharacteristics.

The sheet of material 12 has a width 42 (FIG. 1) extending generallybetween the first side 20 and the second side 22, respectively,sufficiently sized whereby the sheet of material 12 can be wrapped aboutand encompass a floral arrangement 22. The sheet of material 12 has alength 44 (FIG. 1) extending generally between the third side 24 and thefourth side 26, respectively, sufficiently sized whereby the sheet ofmaterial 12 extends over a substantial portion of the floral arrangement36 when the sheet of material 12 has been wrapped about the floralarrangement 36 in accordance with the present invention, as described indetail below.

The sheet of material 12 may be wrapped about the flower pot 30 tosubstantially wrap and cover the flower pot 30 in accordance with thepresent invention. The sheet of material 12 may also comprise apre-formed flower pot cover, as illustrated in FIG. 11.

Referring now to FIG. 1, the sticky element 28 is disposed upon thesheet of material 12, preferably on the upper surface 14 of the sheet12. The sticky element 28 substantially covers the upper surface 28 ofthe sheet 12. Alternatively, the sticky element 28 could be applied onlyto the lower surface 16 of the sheet of material, the sticky elementcould be applied to both the upper surface 14 and the lower surface 16of the sheet of material 12, or the sticky element could be disposedupon only selected portions of the sheet of material 12, as describedbelow. "Sticky element", as used herein, means any adhesive, or anyadhesive/cohesive combination, having sticky qualities (i.e., qualitiesof adhesion or adhesion/cohesion, respectively) sufficient to cause theattachment an insect to the sticky element 28 when the insect contactsthe sticky element 28. "Sticky qualities" means sufficient adhesion, oradhesion/cohesion, respectively (adhesion when an adhesive is used;adhesion/cohesion when any adhesive/cohesive combination is used), tocause the permanent attachment of an insect to the sheet of material 12whenever an insect contacts, in any manner, the sticky element 28. Sincethe sticky element 28 may comprise either an adhesive or anadhesive/cohesive combination, it will be appreciated that bothadhesives and cohesives are known in the art, and both are commerciallyavailable. For example, a preferred sticky element (an adhesive) isavailable from Whitmire Research Laboratories, Inc., St. Louis, Mo.

The sticky element 28 may also comprise an antimicrobial agent."Antimicrobial Agent," as used herein, means an agent possessingantifungal and/or antibacterial and/or known antimicrobial properties. Acomplete disclosure of such antimicrobial agents is contained withinU.S. Ser. No. 07/538,293 filed Jun. 14, 1990 entitled AntimicrobialMaterials and Methods which is hereby incorporated by reference into thepresent application.

The sticky element 28 comprises a liquid, a gas, a solid, a semi-solid,or any combination thereof. The sticky element 28 may be disposed upon asurface of the sheet of material by spraying, painting, brushing,lacquering, immersing a surface of the sheet of material 12 in thesticky element 28, exposing a surface of the sheet of material 12 tosticky element-containing gas, rubbing the sticky element 28 thereupon,or any combination thereof. In a preferred embodiment, the stickyelement 28 is contained within an aerosol or pump spray container, andthe sticky element is sprayed upon a surface of the sheet of material12.

The sticky element 28 may be disposed upon a surface of the sheet ofmaterial 12 during the process of manufacturing the sheet of material12, or immediately after the sheet of material 12 has been manufactured,by any method described herein. Alternatively, the sticky element 28 maybe disposed upon the sheet of material 12 just prior to the use of thesheet of material 12 to wrap a floral arrangement 36, or to decorativelycover a flower pot 30.

The sticky element 28 is disposed on a surface 46, for example, doors(one such door shown in FIGS. 18-19), walls, ceilings, tables, trays,counter tops, floors, windows, lights, light fixtures, furniture,appliances, any other suitable surfaces, or any combination thereof. Thesurface may also comprise a flower pot 30, or a floral arrangement 36.Further, the surface may comprise a flower pot cover formed from a sheetof material 12, a wrapping material 10 comprising a sheet of material 12used to wrap a floral arrangement 36, or any combination thereof.

Preferably, the sticky element 28 comprises an insect attracting color.That is, the sticky element 28 comprises one or more colors, to attractinsects. Ink, dye, pigment, or any combination thereof can be mixed withthe sticky element 28, to create a colored sticky element 28. "Color" asdefined herein means any color, combination of colors, mixture ofcolors, no color, or any combination thereof. Examples of such colorsinclude blue, purple, green, yellow, red, orange, pink, colorless,white, black, gray brown, or any combination thereof. The above definedcolors may be utilized alone, or in any combination.

The colored sticky element 28 may also comprise a "spot" or a tabattached to the sheet of material 12. Such as spot or tab designates anedge of the sheet of material 12, so that when a sheet of material 12 isremoved from a surface or from being wrapped about an item (a floralarrangement 36) an operator can easily identify the periphery 18 of thesheet of material 12 by the spot or tab, and thus lift the periphery 18of the sheet of material 12 at the spot or tab, to remove the sheet ofmaterial 12 from a surface or an item.

The sticky element further comprises, in a preferred embodiment, aninsect attracting scent. "Insect attracting scents" as used herein meansany scent or combination of scents that are known to attract insects.Examples of such scents include flowers, plants (such as fruits andvegetables), foods (for example, breads, cereals, candies), grasses,food condiments (such as honey, sugar, salt), herbs, spices, woods,roots, and the like. Such scents are known in the art, and arecommercially available.

An insecticide may also be mixed with the sticky element. It will beappreciated that insecticides are also well-known in the art, andcommercially available.

The sticky element 28 is disposed upon at least one surface of the sheetof material 12. Any thickness of the sticky element 28 may be disposedupon a surface of the sheet of material 12 in accordance with thepresent invention as long as the sticky element 28 functions asdescribed herein. The sticky element 28, when disposed upon the sheet ofmaterial 12, has a thickness of less than about 1 mil to about 30 mils.Typically, the sticky element 28 has a thickness in a range of less thanabout 0.2 mils to about 30 mils. In a preferred embodiment, the stickyelement 28 is disposed upon one surface of the sheet of material 12comprising man-made organic polymer film, the adhesive having athickness in a range of from less than about 0.5 mils to about 2.5 mils.

The sticky element 28 may comprise at least a portion of the decorationon the sheet of material 12. That is, any geometric, nongeometric,asymmetrical, or fanciful design ("design" as used herein means"decoration") on the sheet of material 12 may comprise, at least inpart, a sticky element 28. The sticky element 28, when disposed upon thesheet of material 12, may comprise a non-geometric, asymmetrical orfanciful design, or a portion of a design, such as flowers, lace,hearts, ribbons, slogans, logos, and/or any series of letters and/ornumbers, and the like (not shown), or any geometric form, for example,triangles, rectangles, octagonals, or the square, illustrated in FIG. 1(the foregoing designs hereinafter collectively referred to as "spot" or"spots" of sticky element 28).

It will be appreciated, however, that the sticky element 28 may compriseone "spot" of sticky element 28, or a plurality of "spots" of stickyelement 28, spread substantially over at least the upper surface 14 ofthe sheet of material 12, as long as the plurality of spots of stickyelements 28 create a continuous area of sticky element 28 near theentire periphery 18 of the sheet of material 12, in order to prevent anycrawling insects from avoiding contact with the sticky element 28.

A release sheet 48 may also be applied to the sticky element 28 after itis disposed on a surface of the sheet of material 12, to protect thesticky qualities of the sticky element 28. One such release sheet 48 isshown in FIG. 4. The release sheet 48 has an upper surface 50, a lowersurface 52, and an outer periphery 54.

The wrapping material 10 may comprise separate sheets of material 12(not shown), or the wrapping material 10 may comprise a plurality ofsheets of material 12 connected together to form a roll 56, as shown inFIGS. 2-4. Preferably, the plurality of sheets of material 12 in theroll 56 are connected by perforations, as illustrated in FIG. 3. Such aroll 56 permits one sheet of material 12 to be withdrawn from the roll56 (one sheet of material 12 shown partially detached, for illustrationpurposes only), the sheet of material 12 being severed from the roll 56.Alternatively, the roll 56 may simply be formed as a continuous roll 56of wrapping material 10 without perforations, wherein a plurality ofsheets of material 12 may be withdrawn from the roll 56 by unrolling aportion of the wrapping material 10 from the roll and using a separatecutting element (not shown) to sever the unrolled portion of thewrapping material 10 from the roll 56 to form the sheet of material (notshown). The roll 56 may also be contained within a dispenser 58, asillustrated in FIG. 4. When the roll 56 is disposed in the dispenser 58,a portion of the wrapping material 10 is again unrolled, and a serratedcutting edge (not shown) contained within the dispenser 58, or aseparate cutting element (not shown) severs the unrolled portion of thewrapping material 10 from the roll 56 to form a sheet of material 12.Any number of sheets of material 12 may form the roll 56 as long as itis possible to withdraw at least one sheet 12 from the roll 56 asdescribed herein. A release strip 48 may cover a surface of a singlesheet of material 12, or all of the wrapping material 10 containedwithin the roll 56, as shown in FIG. 4. It will be appreciated that therelease strip 48 covers a surface of the sheet of material 12 havingsticky elements 28 thereon to protect the sticky qualities of the stickyelements 28, and when a sheet of material 12 is severed from the roll56, the release sheet 48 is simultaneously also severed from the roll56. The release sheet 48 is releasably removed from the sheet ofmaterial 12 (shown for illustration purposes only) before the sheet ofmaterial 12 is disposed upon a flowerpot 30 or wrapped about a floralarrangement 36.

THE EMBODIMENTS AND METHOD OF FIGS. 5-9

FIGS. 5-9 illustrate another embodiment and method of use of the presentinvention. The sheet of material 12a used in this method is constructedexactly the same as the sheet of material 12 shown in FIG. 1, exceptthat the sticky element 28a is shown being disposed thereon in FIG. 5.

After the sheet of material 12a is withdrawn and detached from the roll56 (not shown) by any means described herein, an operator disposes thesheet of material 12a on a relatively horizontal surface (not shown),the lower surface 16a of the sheet of material 12a contacting thehorizontal surface. Next, the operator disposes the sticky element 28aupon the upper surface 14a of the sheet of material 12a, by any meansdescribed herein (for example spraying the sticky element 28a thereon,as shown in FIG. 5), wherein the sticky element 28a substantially coversthe upper surface 14a of the sheet of material 12a. A flower pot 30a isthen provided, and the operator disposes the flower pot 30a on the uppersurface 14a of the sheet of material 12a, and upon the sticky element28a. The sheet of material 12a is then wrapped around the flower pot 30aby being formed and molded upward around the flower pot 30a by theoperator, the upper surface 14a and the sticky element 28a thereoncontacting the outer surface 32a of the flower pot 30a, whereby thesheet of material 12a formed about the flower pot 30a and the sheet ofmaterial 12a substantially surrounds and covers the flower pot 30a,wherein said sticky element 28a on a surface of the sheet of material12a effectively causes a permanent attachment of an insect thereto whenany portion of the insect contacts the sticky element 28a. It will beappreciated, however, that the sheet of material 12a may be pre-formed,by hand or by any means known in the art, before the sheet of material12a is disposed about the flower pot 30a. Therefore, alternatively, theflower pot 30a is inserted into a pre-formed flower pot coverconstructed from the sheet of material 12a, the pre-formed flower potcover substantially surrounding and covering the flower pot 30a, aspreviously described.

THE EMBODIMENTS AND METHOD OF FIGS. 10-13

In an alternative embodiment and method shown in FIGS. 10-13, a flowerpot 30b having a sticky element 28b disposed thereon is provided. Thesticky element 28b disposed, by any method described herein, on theouter surface 32b of a flowerpot 30b. A sheet of material 12b, which isconstructed exactly the same as the sheet of material shown in FIG. 1,is also provided, the sticky element 28b being disposed by any methoddescribed herein on the upper surface 14b of the sheet of material 12b,which is preformed into a flower pot cover, the sticky element 28b beingcovered by a release sheet 48 (not shown), the release sheet 48 beingremoved by the operator prior to the pre-formed sheet of material 12bbeing disposed about the flower pot 30b (not shown). The operatordisposes the pre-formed sheet of material 12b on a relatively horizontalsurface (not shown). The operator then takes the flower pot 30b andinserts the flower pot 30b into the opening provided in the pre-formedsheet of material 12b to receive a flower pot, the upper surface 14b ofthe sheet of material 12b and the sticky element 28b thereon adjacent toand contactingly engaging the outer surface 32b of the flower pot 30band the sticky element 28b thereon, the sheet of material 12bsubstantially surrounding and covering the outer surface 32b of theflowerpot 30b, wherein said sticky elements 28b on the flower pot 30band the sheet of material 12b, respectively, effectively cause apermanent attachment of an insect thereto when any portion of the insectcontacts said sticky elements 12b.

In an alternative embodiment and method of use (not shown), the flowerpot 30b has a sticky element 28b disposed thereon and the flower pot 30bis substantially wrapped by a sheet of material having no sticky element28b thereon. The flower pot 30b is wrapped by any method describedherein.

When the sheet of material 12b covers the flower pot 30b in thepreviously described methods, any insect crawling from the flower pot30b contacts either the sticky element 28b disposed on the outer surface32b of the flower pot 30b, or the sticky element 28b disposed on theupper surface 14b of the sheet of material 12b, becomes permanentlyadhered thereto.

It will also be appreciated that a floral arrangement 36 may also have asticky element 28 disposed thereon by any method described herein, andbe wrapped by a sheet of material having a sticky element 28 on asurface thereof, the sticky element 28 on, for instance, the uppersurface 14 of the sheet of material 12 at least partially contacting thesticky element 28 on the floral arrangement 36 by any method describedherein, the sheet of material 12 substantially wrapping and encompassingthe floral arrangement 36 wherein any insect which contacts either thesticky element 28 on the floral arrangement 36 or the sticky element 28on the sheet of material 12 becomes permanently adhered to either orboth sticky elements 28 (not shown). Similarly, it will be appreciatedthat a surface, for example, a floral arrangement 36, or any othersurface described herein, having a sticky element thereon 28, may bewrapped and/or substantially covered by any method described herein by asheet of material 12 which has no sticky element 28 thereon.

THE EMBODIMENTS AND METHOD OF FIGS. 14-17

FIGS. 14-17 illustrate another method of use of the present invention.The sheet of material 12c, which is constructed exactly the same as thesheet of material 12 shown in FIG. 1, is provided. An operator disposesthe sheet of material 12c on a relatively horizontal surface (notshown), the lower surface 16c of the sheet of material 12c contactingthe surface, and the upper surface 14c of the sheet of material 12csubstantially covered by the sticky element 28c. Next, the operatordisposes a floral arrangement 36c on the upper surface 14c of the sheetof material 12c and the sticky element 28c thereon, preferably near thecenter of the sheet of material 12c. As shown in FIG. 14, the portion ofthe floral arrangement 36c not touching the sheet of material 12c isreferred to as the top portion 60, and the portion of the floralarrangement touching the sheet of material is referred to as the bottomportion 62 of the floral arrangement 36c. Referring to FIGS. 15-17, thesheet of material 12c is then wrapped about the floral arrangement 36cby the operator, the operator overlapping a portion of the sheet ofmaterial 12c over another portion of the sheet of material 12c. That is,for example, the operator places the second side 22c of the sheet ofmaterial 12c over the top portion 60 of the floral arrangement 36c, thebottom portion 62 of the floral arrangement 36c lying against andcontacting the sheet of material 12c, then the operator places the firstside 20c of the sheet of material 12c over the second side 22c of thesheet of material 12c, the first side overlapping portions of the sheetof material 12c by contacting the sticky element 28c thereon on theoverlapping portion of the sheet of material 12c (near the second side22c ) with a corresponding adjacent portion of the sheet of material 12c(near the first side 20c), wherein both the top portion 60 and thebottom portion 62 of the floral arrangement 36c is substantiallyencompassed by the sheet of material 12c, and wherein the sticky element28c on the sheet of material 12c contacts both itself and portions ofthe floral arrangement 36c to substantially encompass and surround asubstantial portion of the floral arrangement 36c. It will beappreciated that the sticky qualities of the sticky element 28c willcause insects which contact the sticky element 28c to become permanentlyattached thereto.

THE EMBODIMENTS AND METHOD OF FIGS. 18-19

In a final alternative method of use, as illustrated in FIGS. 18-19, thesticky element 28d may be disposed on any surface 46 defined herein, onesuch surface 46 (a door) shown in FIGS. 18-19. The sticky element 28dmay be disposed (by any method described herein) on such a surface 46,to substantially cover the surface 46 and to cause insects which contactthe sticky element 28d to become permanently attached thereto.

Changes may be made in the embodiments of the invention described hereinor in parts or elements of the embodiments described herein or in thesteps or in the sequences of steps of the methods described hereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedin the following claim.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of disposing a sheet of material on aflower pot in order to trap an insect on the flower pot, comprising thesteps of:providing a sheet of material having an upper surface, a lowersurface and an outer periphery; providing a sticky element comprisingsufficient sticky qualities to cause an insect to become permanentlyattached to the sticky element when any portion of an insect comes intocontact with the sticky element; providing a flower pot having an outersurface; disposing the sticky element on at least a portion of the outersurface of the flower pot such that the sticky element is exposed tocapture an insect when an insect contacts the sticky element; wrappingthe sheet of material about the outer surface of the flower pot, thesheet of material surrounding and covering a portion of the outersurface of the flower pot; and positioning the sheet of material suchthat at least a portion of the outer surface of the flower pot isuncovered by the sheet of material, the sticky element remaining exposedin said portion.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein in the step ofproviding a sheet of material, the sheet of material is selected fromthe group consisting of paper, cellophane, foil, polymer film, fiber,burlap, and any combination thereof.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinin the step of providing a sticky element, the sticky element furthercomprises an insect attracting scent.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereinin the step of providing a sheet of material, the sheet of materialfurther comprises an insect attracting color.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein in the step of providing a sticky element, the sticky elementfurther comprises an insecticide.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein inthe step of providing a sticky element, the sticky element furthercomprises an adhesive.
 7. A method of disposing a sheet of material on aflower pot in order to trap an insect on the flower pot, comprising thesteps of:providing a sheet of material having an upper surface, a lowersurface and an outer periphery; providing a sticky element comprisingsufficient sticky qualities to cause an insect to become permanentlyattached to the sticky element when any portion of an insect comes intocontact with the sticky element; providing a flower pot having an outersurface; wrapping the sheet of material about the outer surface of theflower pot, the sheet of material surrounding and covering a portion ofthe outer surface of the flower pot; positioning the sheet of materialsuch that at least a portion of the outer surface of the flower pot isuncovered by the sheet of material, forming an uncovered portion; anddisposing the sticky element on at least the uncovered portion of theouter surface of the flower pot such that the sticky element is exposedto capture an insect when an insect contacts the sticky element.
 8. Themethod of claim 7, wherein in the step of providing a sheet of material,the sheet of material is selected from the group consisting of paper,cellophane, foil, polymer film, fiber, burlap, and any combinationthereof.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein in the step of providing asticky element, the sticky element further comprises an insectattracting scent.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein in the step ofproviding a sheet of material, the sheet of material further comprisesan insect attracting color.
 11. The method of claim 7, wherein in thestep of providing a sticky element, the sticky element further comprisesan insecticide.
 12. The method of claim 7, wherein in the step ofproviding a sticky element, the sticky element further comprises anadhesive.